44 



THE OSPKEY. 



Notes. 



London's Bird Trade is treated of in a 

 recent number of the London Mail. The figures 

 are very interesting, especially those relating 

 t" the import i 1 1 1 « > America of Robins. Com- 

 paratively few. so far as we can learn, come 

 into the United States. Perhaps most go to 

 Australia. EDITORS. 



The birds to which the majority of people are 

 devoting their attention at this festive season 

 of the year are those which are hung up or laid 

 out attractively in the windows of poulterers' 

 shops. There are oilier kinds of birds, however, 

 that cause a considerable turnover in money in 

 the course of t lie year. Vast numbers of Robins, 

 for instance, are caught and ^eul abroad. 



The number of Robin redbreasts (Erylhaca 

 rubecula) that are exported from this country to 

 the United States, Canada and Australia during 

 tin- year reaches a total of nearly 25.(inn. and 

 they' fetch about £18,000. A few Starlings are 

 included in these figures, as it has been found 

 impossible to obtain separate statistics; but the 

 great majority an- Robins. 



Among singing birds, at least 500,000 Canaries 

 find purchasers in this country in the course of 

 a year, representing in cash £120,000. Fully a 

 quarter of these- come from the Tyrol and cer- 

 tain parts of Germany, where in some little 

 villages Canary breeding is practically the only 

 industry. Tin largest number of Canaries bred 

 in England is by a firm in the neighborhood of 

 Norwich, which disposes of 20,000 per year, the 

 value of which is about £5,000. 



Piping Bullfinches are also largely of German 

 importation, the lie-t districts for these being 

 Hesse and Fulda. 



About 40,000 trained Hull finches come into 

 this country every year from Germany and 

 Russia, and their value, taking one with another, 

 is over £100,000 



The Chaffinch is a very common bird in Eng- 

 land, so common that it can be bought in the 

 street for sixpence, but in Germany there is a 

 variety whose soul: is very highly esteemed. A 

 few have been brought over here and sold at £4 

 each, but the climate does not apparently suit 

 them. 



Larks and Linnets are actually to be bought 

 for twopence each from the men who net them, 

 but a dealer usually charges at least a shilling 

 for them. Blackbirds, Thrushes and Gold- 

 finches usually cost more, about a couple of 

 shillings, although they may be got for sixpence 

 first hand. 



The largest price obtained for a British wild 

 bird is £10, for a perfectly white specimen of a 

 Blackbird. 



Prick or Curious Animals in the World's 



Big MARKET. There is no branch of the animal 

 kingdom, nor any corner of the world, that is 

 not ransacked and explored nowadays for the 

 purpose of collecting natural history curiosities 

 to supply the commercial demand. Special ex- 

 peditions are sent to remote and almost inac- 

 cessible regions to gather strange and rare ani- 



mals, for which the market is as unfailing as 

 for ans staple product of the soil or the factory. 

 Firms dealing in such merchandise in a large 

 way are located in must large cities, both in this 

 country and abroad, and. judging from the com- 

 prehensiveness of their catalogues, it would 

 seem as if there was nothing that Hies or walks 

 or swims that they are not prepared to furnish 

 on short notice at list prices. 



One ol these catalogues advert is,s a large as- 

 sortment of "live material.*' as it is termed. 

 From this document one learns that he can 

 obtain large bullfrogs at S3 a dozen, alive and 

 kicking; medium sized bullfrogs, are cheaper, 

 costing only $1.75 for twelve. Turtles are $2 a 

 dozen for "adults," and small ones for aquaria 

 ate oil, red for 15 cents each. Pond snails, "in 

 assorted lots," are listed at 25 cents a dozen; 

 Crayfish cost SI a dozen, and newts are 15 cents 

 each. In ordering crayfish it is requested that 

 a Few days' notice be given in which to secure 

 them, in case the stock should be low. No such 

 reservation, however, is made in the case of 

 earthworms, which come at 60 cents a dozen. 

 It is safe to say that any small boy will furnish 

 earthworms under this rate. 



It will be understood that all the above animals 

 are shipped alive. The catalogue quotes small 

 alligators at 50 to 75 cents apiece. Live rattle- 

 snakes come higher especially the diamond 

 rattlesnake which costs from S5 to S12. Eco- 

 nomical in rsoiis. however, may prefer a ground 

 rattlesnake at SI. The copperhead is supposed 

 to be about as deadly as the rattlesnake, and 

 may be obtained for $2, while chicken snakes. 

 king snakes, and garter snakes sell as low as 50 

 cents each. 



Crabs an- not ottered alive, but in alcohol, and 

 in this shape one ran buy sand crabs, blue crabs, 

 spider era bs, fiddle crabs, mud crabs, and hermit 

 crabs at prices running from Id to 75 cents 

 apiece, spider crabs being the dearest. Insects, 

 similarly preserved, are so cheap as to tempt 

 purchase. Squash bugs cost only 50 cents a 

 dozen, while giant water bugs come at only half 

 that price. Earwigs are quoted at 50 cents a 

 dozen, ant lions at 10 cents each, crickets at 50 

 cents a dozen, seventeen year locust at Id cents 

 apiece, and .Tune bugs at 50 cents a dozen. 

 Hois.- Hies invite the buyer at only 10 cents the 

 fly, "true wasps" may be obtained for the same 

 price, and bumblebees foot the list at 6 cents. 



In London, which is the great bug market of 

 i In- world, auctions of insects are held every 

 year, and startling prices are paid sometimes 

 for rare specimens. As much as S800 has been 

 brought by a single butterfly, while an out of 

 lln- way beetle may be valued at many times its 

 weighl in gold. 



Hamburg is a great market for wild animals, 

 largely from Africa, that city having an impor- 

 tant trade with the Dark Continent. To Loudon 

 came much material of the same sort from Aus- 

 tralia and New Zealand, and many rare creat- 

 ures are obtained from sailors who fetch them 

 In. in various parts of the world. An American 

 dealer, not very long ago, made a special trip to 



